Category: 6. Sports

Ali Orr’s second century of the tournament guided Hampshire into the One-Day Cup semi-finals as they saw off Middlesex in their quarter-final at Radlett.

The left-hander struck 108, batting through most of the innings to underpin Hampshire’s recovery from 95-5 as they set their opponents a target of 230 with paceman Henry Brookes taking 4-53.

Liam Dawson then stifled Middlesex’s reply with his spell of 4-33, supported by fellow left-arm spinner Andrew Neal (1-30) as the hosts were bowled out for 187 in 45.3 overs.

Sam Robson top-scored with 48 and Toby Roland-Jones’ late unbeaten cameo of 39 prolonged the contest, but it was not enough to deny Hampshire a semi-final date on Sunday, when they will face Yorkshire at Scarborough.

Middlesex made three changes to the side that had clinched a tense win at Lancashire to secure their knockout place, including returns for Roland-Jones and Ryan Higgins who both sent down tidy opening spells.

Despite that, Orr and Nick Gubbins built a steady partnership of 45 until Brookes struck with his second delivery, tempting the Hampshire captain into a mistimed pull that sailed straight to midwicket.

Fletcha Middleton was next to depart, caught behind nudging at a Brookes outswinger and the seamer soon grabbed his – and Middlesex’s – third wicket when Ben Brown was pinned leg before.

Orr batted fluently, timing his shots on both sides of the wicket and steering Brookes to the point boundary to pass 50 for the second time in as many innings, but Middlesex continued to make inroads.

Dawson, drafted in for his first appearance of the tournament, fell lbw to Sebastian Morgan, while Zafar Gohar’s miserly stint of 1-29 brought him the wicket of Ben Mayes, caught miscuing a reverse sweep.

However, James Fuller’s spirited 42 provided the perfect foil for Orr, with the pair adding 96 from 18 overs before Higgins had the all-rounder caught in the deep.

Having advanced to three figures in style by hooking Brookes for six, Orr eventually holed out to long on off Higgins, his departure effectively ending Hampshire’s hopes of clambering above 250.

Middlesex rejigged their batting order, promoting Nathan Fernandes to open in the wake of his match-winning 92 at Old Trafford and the left-hander continued in similar vein with two sweetly-struck straight drives to the rope off Kyle Abbott.

Although Josh de Caires fell to Fuller’s diving catch around the corner, the batting side still looked reasonably comfortable at 66-1 before they were decisively pegged back by the Hampshire spinners.

Fernandes’ innings of 42 came to an end when he was pinned leg before by Neal and Dawson then removed Ben Geddes in the same manner before having Higgins taken low at slip.

Along with seamer Eddie Jack, the spin duo smothered their opponents’ scoring rate in the middle overs and it fell to Robson to dig in, take advantage of rare stray deliveries and attempt to take the game deep.

Joe Cracknell launched a brief counter-attack, clubbing a six and two fours from one Fuller over to reach 22 from as many balls, but the bowler took his revenge by dismissing both Cracknell and Gohar in the space of three deliveries.

Brown’s neat stumping to remove Robson brought Hampshire a third wicket with the score unchanged and that appeared to signal the end of Middlesex’s challenge, but Roland-Jones went on the offensive, battering Abbott for a trio of off-side boundaries.

He added 45 for the ninth wicket with Morgan, but Hampshire were not be denied and Dawson sealed victory by bowling last man Brookes in the 46th over.

ECB Reporters’ Network supported by Rothesay.

The top players on the Hologic WTA Tour will return to Beijing next month for the WTA 1000 China Open.

The 96-player field is led by World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka, and she’ll be joined by the rest of the top 5: Wimbledon champion Iga Swiatek, defending China Open champion Coco Gauff, Jessica Pegula and Mirra Andreeva.

Making her return to the tour in China, to the delight of fans, will be China’s Qinwen Zheng, who withdrew from the US Open after undergoing surgery for “persistent pain” in her right elbow. Zheng, currently ranked No. 7 in the PIF WTA Rankings, hasn’t played since Wimbledon, where she lost her first-round match to Katerina Siniakova. 

Rounding out the top 10 in the field is Australian Open champion Madison Keys, Jasmine Paolini, Wimbledon finalist Amanda Anisimova and Elena Rybakina.

Played on outdoor hard courts, the China Open has been a staple on the Hologic WTA Tour since 2004. With 1,000 rankings points on the line and a nearly $9 million purse, the tournament is the second-to-last 1000-level event before the WTA Finals in Riyadh —  the WTA 1000 Dongfeng Voyah · Wuhan Open is the following week — and there will likely be qualification implications at stake. 

As the fourth seed in 2024, Gauff defeated Naomi Osaka, Paula Badosa and Karolina Muchova in the final to capture her second career WTA 1000 title. She also became the second American woman to win the tournament, after Serena Williams hoisted the trophy in 2004 and 2013.

Swiatek is also a former champion in Beijing, having won in 2023 — she pulled out of the tournament last year — and Osaka, who is in this field, won in 2019. 

Other former Slam champions in this year’s draw are Jelena Ostapenko, Sofia Kenin, Emma Raducanu, Barbora Krejcikova and Bianca Andreescu.

Main draw play will begin on September 24, and the tournament will run through October 5.

Mysore, August 28 (IANS) The Mangaluru Dragons have been crowned champions of the Maharaja Trophy KSCA T20 2025 as they won by 15 runs (rpt 15 runs) via the VJD method against the Hubli Tigers, in the final, at the Srikantadatta Narasimharaja Wadiyar Stadium. The Mangaluru Dragons, who were 85/2 in 10.4 overs when rain halted the match, had eight wickets in hand and were 15 runs ahead of the par score during their chase of 155.

Having opted to bat first, the Hubli Tigers were off to a brisk start, Mohammed Taha taking on the attack while Devdutt Paddikkal held up his end. The openers put on 38 before Padikkal was dismissed for 10 off 7 balls, with the score at 38/1, midway through the third over. Taha was joined by Krishnan Shrijith, and the duo kept up the momentum. However, in the sixth over, Taha was scalped by Macneil Noronha for 27 off 15 deliveries. Macneil Noronha’s superb over ended the powerplay, with the Hubli Tigers were 52/2.

From then on, Shrijith ensured he kept the scoreboard moving at his end, whilst the middle-order was given the license to attack. Karthikeya KP (8), Ritesh Bhatkal (13), and Abhinav Manohar (17) got starts but could not hang in there. With the final phase of the innings set to commence, Shrijith decided to go through the gears, as the Hubli Tigers looked to finish strongly.

After Shivakumar Rakshith’s (2) dismissal in the 17th over, Shrijith completed his half-century before being accounted for by Sachin Shinde, who finished with a three-wicket haul (3-28). Manvanth Kumar L (15 not out) added a few lusty blows at the end, helping the Hubli Tigers post a healthy total of 154/8 in their 20 overs. For the Mangaluru Dragons, Macneil Noronha (2-25) and Shreevathsa Acharya (2-30) bagged a couple of wickets each, whilst Santokh Singh finished with (1-36).

In response, the Mangaluru Dragons seemed to be in a hurry at the top of the order. Openers Lochan Gowda and Sharath BR were striking it well and finding the gaps at will in the Power-play. Whilst Sharath was the more aggressive amongst the two, it was Lochan Gowda, who was the first to fall for 18 off 17 balls, cleaned up by Ritesh Bhatkal, as the powerplay ended at 55/1.

Sharath at the other end, though, wasn’t letting up and smashed a couple of sixes in the next over, and was racing on towards a fifty. However, he fell just short, getting 49 from 35 balls, as he became Ritesh Bhatkal’s second wicket in the 10th over. And mid-way through the chase, the Mangaluru Dragons were 81/2.

A few deliveries later, rain made an appearance with the Mangaluru Dragons 85/2 in 10.4 overs. The rain refused to relent, and eventually, the Mangaluru Dragons won by the VJD method, as they were 15 runs ahead of the par score when rain stopped play.

Brief scores

Hubli Tigers 154/8 in 20 overs (Shrijith KL 52, MD Taha 27; Sachin Shinde 3-30) lost to Mangaluru Dragons 85/2 in 10.4 overs (Sharath BR 49; Ritesh Bhatkal 2-14) by 15 runs (VJD method)

–IANS

bsk/

KATOWICE (Poland) – France’s journey at FIBA EuroBasket 2025 began in dominant fashion on Thursday.

Les Bleus had a comfortable afternoon on the opening day of Group D, pretty much controlling the encounter from start to finish as they reached a 92-64 victory over Belgium.

Turning Point

There was no real turning point, as Frederic Fauthoux’s team found themselves on the losing end for only the initial 25 seconds of action.

France had already gained so much momentum by the beginning of the second quarter, when Zaccharie Risacher came up with a spectacular poster dunk, that their lead never dropped below double digits again.

TCL Player of the Game

It was mostly a collective effort by the FIBA EuroBasket 2022 runner-ups as everyone on the French team contributed in scoring.

Bilal Coulibaly however added some extra spark on both ends of the floor, to finish with 12 points (5-of-7 from two-point range), 6 rebounds, and back-to-back blocks on Ismael Bako.

Stats Don’t Lie

France were so dominant that they didn’t even need to hit any three-pointers. In fact, neither of the two teams had a solid showing from the perimeter. Belgium shot 7-of-20 from beyond the arc, and France finished on 8-of-28.

The difference was that France were very successful almost every time they drove to the basket, outscoring Belgium 38-20 in the paint.

Bottom Line

France will now focus on their upcoming matchup, facing Luka Doncic’s Slovenia, aware of their all-around capabilities. Some more good news for Frederic Fauthoux? Nadir Hifi’s immediate offensive contribution after replacing the injured Matthew Strazel, and Sylvain Francisco’s playmaking gems.

Coach Dario Gjergja meanwhile can look at Hans Vanwijn’s 13-point effort and Ismael Bako’s 11-point game as positice takeaways heading into the next game.

They Said

“It took us a little bit of time, but we’re happy. We won by 30, and we did a lot of good stuff. It was like I never left the team. I’m happy I have rejoined the group; I’m ready whenever the coach puts me on the court. I’ll do everything to help my team.” – France’s Nadir Hifi.

“Really satisfied with the fact that everybody contributed. The main goal for us is defensively, putting high energy, pressure, and getting our opponents really tired. We did a great job; our standard is to limit our opponents to a maximum of 70 points, and they scored 64 today. It gives us confidence offensively, we’re able to push the ball and score off turnovers.” – France’s Elie Okobo.

“I think we showed great basketball in a lot of moments, we have to solve the mistakes we made. But we keep fighting, we have hope for the next games. You have to respect France; they are a really good team. We proved we could play really well against them.” – Belgium’s Ismael Bako.

For more quotes, tune in to the official post-game press conference!

FIBA

The Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) has announced the national U23 squad for AFC U23 Asian Cup 2026 Saudi Arabia Qualifiers to be held in Cambodia.

Under the guidance of Head Coach Nolberto Solano, the squad features a mix of talented players ready to compete at the international level.

The final Pakistan football travelling squad comprises 23 players:

Goalkeeper: Adam Najeeb, Hassan Ali, Umair Arooj

Defenders: Haseeb Khan, Mohib Ullah, Muhammad Adeel, Ans Amin, Muhammad Haroon, Hamza Munir, Ahmed Salman, Junaid Shah, Abdul Rehman

Midfielders: Tufail Khan, Hayyaan Khattak, Muhammad Junaid, Ali Zafar, Adnan Justin

Forwards: Mckeal Abdullah, Umair Bahader, Furqan Umer, Ali Raza, Suleman Ali, Adeel Younas

LIMASSOL (Cyprus) – Bosnia and Herzegovina took care of business right out of the gates and defeated Cyprus 91-64 to open their FIBA EuroBasket 2025 campaign in the first-ever game in the competition for the host nation.

Bosnia and Herzegovina were pushed by their strong support at the Spyros Kyprianou Arena as the Dragons avoided an early upset in their fight to get through a difficult Group C.

Turning Point

Cyprus hung around for the first seven minutes but Bosnia and Herzegovina pulled away with a 15-2 run to grab a 30-15 lead midway through the second quarter. The cushion swelled to 24 points late in the first half.

Spurred on by the home fans, Cyprus fought back into the game and pulled within eight points at 62-54 but the Dragons buried three three-pointers to finish off the host side.

TCL Player of the Game

Jusuf Nurkic was too much to handle all game as the Balkan big man collected 18 points with 2 three-pointers while adding 6 rebounds – four of them from the offensive glass – to go with 2 steals and 1 block.

Stats Don’t Lie

Cyprus was held to just 37 percent shooting, including 38 percent on two-pointers. Bosnia and Herzegovina struggled from the outside with just 32 percent shooting but they knocked down 13 triples. The Balkan side also grabbed 19 offensive rebounds to help their cause.

And one for the record books, Ioannis Pashialis scored the first-ever EuroBasket points for Cyprus with a jumper after nearly three minutes.

Bottom Line

Things will get more difficult for Bosnia and Herzegovina in the second game as they will face reigning champions Spain. And it will be a Spanish team wounded after losing their opening game to Georgia.

Cyprus, meanwhile, have their much anticipated matchup with neighbors Greece, but with some positives to take from their first encounter.

They Said

This game report will be updated in the coming moments. Stay tuned.

For more quotes, tune in to the official post-game press conference!

FIBA

Somerset romped through to the One-Day Cup semi-finals with a comprehensive six-wicket victory over arch-rivals Gloucestershire at Taunton.

The visitors were bowled out for a disappointing 155 in 40.5 overs after winning the toss, skipper Jack Taylor top-scoring with 43.

There were three wickets each for Jake Ball and Tom Lammonby, while Jack Leach sent down 10 overs of left-arm spin for miserly figures of 2-23.

Two rain-interruptions left Somerset facing a revised target of 149 in 45 overs.

They reached it with more than 13 overs to spare, skipper James Rew leading the way with 46, and now face a trip to meet Worcestershire in the semi-finals on Sunday.

Gloucestershire never recovered from losing James Bracey, so prolific in the competition this season, to the second ball of the match, bowled by Ball pushing forward defensively. The decision to bat first had come as a surprise as play began under heavily overcast skies, with the floodlights on, and a threat of rain later in the day.

Cameron Bancroft looked in good touch, striking two big sixes in a half-century stand for the second wicket with Ollie Price.

It was 56-2 in the 14th over when the Australian, on 34, played a checked drive to Kasey Aldridge and saw the bowler take a juggling return catch.

Price had made 25 when judged lbw to a ball from Lammonby angled into his pads and 97 for four as Ben Charlesworth was caught at mid-on aiming a back-foot forcing shot off the left-arm seamer.

Lammonby had figures of 3-20 when Graeme van Buuren popped up a soft return catch and departed for a duck looking suspiciously at the pitch.

At 97-5, Gloucestershire were in disarray. With 29 runs added, Tommy Boorman fell leg-before sweeping a ball from Leach, who followed up by having Daaryoush Ahmed brilliantly caught by Aldridge racing towards the long-on boundary from mid-off and taking the ball just inside the rope as it dropped over his shoulder.

Jack Taylor drove a catch to mid-off give Ben Green a wicket, having faced 59 balls and hit six fours. With his departure at 140-8 went Gloucestershire’s last hope of a meaningful total and Ball wrapped up the innings as Matt Taylor and Craig Miles edged through to wicketkeeper James Rew.

Somerset’s reply had reached 16 without loss when the forecast rain arrived at 14:25 BST.

Play resumed at 15:50, with no initial reduction in overs or the victory target, and with just five runs added Archie Vaughan was superbly caught by wicketkeeper Bracey diving low to his right off Matt Taylor.

Lewis Goldsworthy pulled a six off Taylor before Lammonby, on 18, played a loose drive at Craig Miles’ second delivery of the game, well wide off off stump, and gave a routine catch to Bracey with the total on 47 in the 12th over.

At 53-2, rain forced a further 25 minute break and the overs and target were reduced. James Rew quickly settled in, lofting a ball from van Buuren over long-off for six as he and Goldsworthy added 39 for the third wicket before the latter fell for 27, caught and bowled off a leading edge in Ahmed’s first over.

Having survived a loud appeal for a catch behind off Josh Shaw, the Somerset captain prospered in tandem with younger brother Thomas Rew, who took a six and four off an Ahmed over before pulling Jack Taylor’s first ball of the match over deep square for another maximum.

Taylor had Rew senior stumped by Bracey having faced 53 balls, but by then the outcome was beyond doubt and his precocious sibling saw Somerset home, ending unbeaten on 40 off just 39 deliveries.

ECB Reporters’ Network supported by Rothesay.

Australia, much like Dorian Gray staring at his portrait, has long been in search of their vision of perfection. The allrounder. The Keith Miller.

Since the “nugget” retired in 1956 Australia has looked for that next cricketer who could bring them their holy grail. A man who could merge both batting and bowling in one magnificent package. Australia has Cameron Green, but whether he is the finished portrait is yet to be seen.

Keith Miller himself was in some ways much like Dorian Gray. Handsome. Both carried a presence; you just need to swap Dorian’s golden locks with Miller’s brown.

Cameron Green has been part of the international scene for years and has shown more than just glimpses of his promise. He debuted in the 2020-21 BGT, in the infamous “36” test match. His first notable contribution came a couple of test matches later in Sydney where he scored 84, in the shadows of imminent declaration, but we saw the absolute disdain with which he can deal with fast bowlers.

Green possesses this shot where he clears the front leg and winds up with his long leavers and swings through the line, depositing pacers over long on and deep mid wicket.

Siraj was given this treatment on three separate occasions. Even Bumrah wasn’t spared. He went full and straight and was drilled for four. Next ball he dropped short and green launched into it, heaving it over deep square leg well into the stands. But because Bumrah is Bumrah, he picked up Green the next ball.

This was the first brushstroke on Green’s canvas, but we didn’t see too many immediately after that.

His first few years in test cricket saw him play the occasional good innings or pick up a decent haul of wickets. When tested against Sri Lanka in Galle he notched up 77. But Green’s form dipped from there. From that innings onwards to the 4th Ashes test in 2023, Green’s average with the bat was 20.38 and with the ball was 41.93. In fact, of the 14 wickets that he had taken in that time span, over a third of them had come in one innings against South Africa.

Australia’s next big — it every sense — was struggling.

For the fifth test in the 2023 Ashes, he was left out in favour of Mitch Marsh who swash buckled his way to a 100 in Manchester.

But David Warner’s retirement at the top of the order opened another door up for Cameron Green. He didn’t even need to really open the door, let alone the batting. Steve Smith did that for him. In what must be one of the more baffling decisions in modern cricket — it was Steve Smith — Australia’s stalwart at 4, who wanted to open the batting in an era where it had seldom been tougher. Green slotted into the vacated number 4 spot.

It was batting at 4 where he played his finest innings yet. Australia was staring down the barrel of a small first innings score when Josh Hazlewood walked out to join Green in the middle, with the score at 267/9 in Wellington. Together, they stitched 116 for the last wicket, with Green finishing unbeaten on 174*. In the other three innings of the test match, neither team crossed 200.

But just as Green looked to get rolling, he picked up a stress fracture in his spine and he was out of the 2024-2025 BGT.

Whilst Green was sidelined, Australia played musical chairs with their batting order. McSweeney was in and McSweeney was gone. The Smith experiment was over, and he was back at home at number 4. Even though Konstas opened in the latter half of the BGT, Labuschagne was pencilled in to open in the WTC final. Oh, and Marsh was gone, with the ‘slug’ Beau Webster brought in.

Australia were desperate to get Green back into the canvas of their first XI, but the easel had shifted. It wouldn’t be the no.4, that was returned to Steve Smith. Green would be thrust into first drop, a position where no one in world cricket is scoring any runs. In his return test match across the two innings, Green played a total of four balls and scored 4 runs. At least the strike rate was healthy.

It didn’t look as though it was getting any better in the first test match against the West Indies either, scoring 3 and 15 in Barbados. But in the next couple of tests, in exceptionally trying conditions, Australia’s vision of Green looked as though it was taking shape.

Towards the end of day 2 in Sabina Park, Australia looked in real danger of being bowled out in a single session. The pink ball and flood lights of Sabina Park making batting look impossible. Australia were 69/6 at the end of the 21st over, with around 10 overs of hell still to come. Green faced nearly 11 overs worth of deliveries that session and scored nearly half of Australia’s 99 run tally for the session.

Throughout his career the big man from WA has always looked a very nervous starter, almost timid in his approach. The knocks in the West Indies however offered the first real sign that he was beginning to assert himself.

Green’s form has continued into the white ball set up. As Australia enter the Brave New World in limited overs cricket, Green is set to become their fulcrum in both the T20 and ODI side. He was the player of the series in their 5-0 sweep over the West Indies and has lately illustrated his ODI aptitude in a blistering 100 against South Africa.

Green’s bowling remains a question mark. A career average of 35.31 is not exactly flattering, but you’d expect as he matures his raw skills in the form of freakish height and ability to conventionally swing the bowl should come to the fore. But the bigger question mark is around his body.

The flexibility Green provides hinges upon his ability to bowl spells of the short stuff and allow the main quicks to have a break.

The coming Ashes will provide plenty of paint for Cameron Green’s portrait. At present, there seems to be sketch, the faint outlines of a figure who could be anything. The first dabs of colour are well and truly placed, flashes of brilliance on both home and foreign soil.

Oscar Wilde revealed the truth about Dorian Gray’s soul through the decay of his portrait. With Cameron Green we are not looking for a window into his soul, only into his cricketing destiny. We are looking to see if we are watching Australia’s next great all-rounder.

About the Author: Moosa Niazi
Brisbane kid who’s chasing narratives. Cricket, F1 and everywhere in between, trying to justify the hours lost watching them.